Category Archives: Portage Central Mustangs

Portage Central grabbed a varsity basketball sweep in their final action before the holiday break Thursday, defeating Paw Paw 59-44 in boys play and 56-27 in the girls game. In the boys contest, a 14-point fourth quarter from junior Jason Mih allowed the Mustangs to pull ahead after a back-and-forth affair. In the girls game, a 25-2 second quarter put the game out of reach.

The team captains meet with the officials before the game.

Paw Paw hit the opening basket in the boys game and had their biggest lead of the game at the end of the first quarter, up 13-6. They stayed ahead until three minutes were left in the second quarter. After trading the lead, Portage Central tied the game at 25 going into the half with a no-look Griffin Baker pass setting up a triple from Zach Bumgarner.

The game stayed within two possessions for the entire third quarter, with PC holding a 38-34 advantage heading into the fourth. Then, Jason Mih came alive and delivered a 14-point quarter, including four consecutive threes, to gave Portage Central the final edge.

Mih finished with a team-high 20 points. Paw Paw’s Luke Toliver posted 25 points. The Portage Central boys improve to 3-1 with the victory and are off until January 9 at home against Lakeview. Paw Paw falls to 2-2 and hosts South Haven Friday night.

Portage Central’s girls warming up

Neither team had a decisive advantage in the first quarter of the girls game, as Portage Central led 10-7 after one. The Mustangs were dominant in the second and third quarters, outscoring Paw Paw 35-2. Although Paw Paw won the fourth quarter 18-11, the hole was far too deep to climb out of.

Kayla Mathieu and Abby Long each scored 19 points for the Mustangs. Paw Paw got 14 points from Kiarra Herson. Portage Central moves to 4-2 and travels to Lakeview on January 9 for their next game. Paw Paw drops to 1-5 and hosts South Haven Friday.

It’s the second consecutive year these schools have met in late December, meeting this season in Portage after playing last season at Paw Paw. Last year, the Paw Paw boys were 47-43 winners and the Portage Central girls were 43-29 victors. These schools also met two seasons ago in boys play, won 57-32 by the Mustangs.

The Southwest Michigan Blades defeated Kalamazoo United 4-1 and the Kalamazoo Eagles won 5-4 in overtime over Portage Central in Wednesday evening’s SWMHSHL action at Wings West. The win in the first game left the Blades as the only team unbeaten within league play, with the second game leaving the Mustangs as the lone team without a league win.

The Blades dominated the shots on goal column all game, but entered the first intermission behind 1-0. Jake Gerhard turned away 22 shots in the first for the Hams and Garrett Warner put United ahead with an unassisted goal with 1:54 left.

Midway through the second period, the Blades scored twice within in a minute. The first came from Parker Lawrence, who took advantage as a defender tripped over a fallen stick. The second one came via Jett Haifley for the 2-1 lead after two. The Blades took a 3-1 lead on an unassisted shorthanded goal from Chris Bigelow with 11:05 remaining, then added the final dagger on a 4-on-4 goal by Jaxon Dobrolowski with 4:09 to go.

Blades goalie Zac Hattan had 20 saves in the victory with United’s Gerhard stopping 48 shots. The Blades stand alone at the top of the SWMHSHL standings at 3-0-0 following to win, overall they’re 9-4-0. It was their first win over United since February 2015. United drops to 1-4-0 on the loss and 1-1-0 against league foes.

The Blades are back in action Sunday at the LSJ Warriors, then meet the Eagles next Wednesday at Wings West. United travels to Troy Saturday, then returns home next Wednesday against Portage Northern.

Carter Maxey (#14) had a hat-trick and the game-winning Eagle goal

The Eagles never trailed in their game, getting the lead in the first three minutes on a Jimmy Wressel goal. Carter Maxey scored in the final two minutes to put the Eagles up 2-0 at the break. Portage Central grabbed the only goal of the second period with Canyon Morse’s 4-on-4 strike putting the Mustangs back within one entering the third.

With 11:33 left in regulation, Danny Keene pushed the Eagle lead back to two goals. Shortly after, Keene was ejected, along with PC starting forwards Erek Decker and Mitchell Ely for a fracas just before the 10 minute mark.

The score stayed at 3-1 until the Mustangs took advantage of a kneeing major against Wressel. Konnor McLeod’s powerplay goal put Portage Central down one with 3:23 remaining. Although still down a man, the Eagles seemingly had the final dagger on a Maxey empty net goal with 1:27 remaining. Only 13 seconds later, Morse matched it to put the Mustangs back within one. With 27 seconds left, McLeod was able to tie the game.

Eagle goalie Drake Witt had 38 saves in the victory, PC’s Bryan Gracey stopped 26. The Eagles jump to 2-5-0 overall and 1-3-0 in SWMHSHL play. It was the first Eagle win over PC since February 2014. Portage Central falls to 1-5-0 overall and 0-3-0 in the league. The Mustangs travel to Grand Haven Saturday with the Eagles heading north to Cheboygan against Utica Friday and Lakeland Saturday.

Overall, the Blades are 8-4-0 with a 1-3 mark over the weekend at the Cornfield Cup tournament in Culver, Indiana. United is 1-3-0 overall, falling 10-3 at Northview Saturday. United won both meetings against the Blades last season, 6-1 and 5-4. The last Blade win over United was in the SWMHSHL tournament in February 2015.

In the second game, both the Eagles and Mustangs are trying to get their first SWMHSHL win. The Eagles are 1-5-0 overall and 0-3-0 in league play, while Portage Central is 1-4-0 overall and 0-2-0 in the SWMHSHL. Both teams got their lone win to date over Kenowa Hills. Portage Central won both meetings over the Eagles last season, 6-4 and 4-1. The Mustangs have won their last seven games over the Eagles, with the last Eagle win coming in February 2014.

Portage Northern defeated Portage Central 4-1 Monday evening in the 14th annual Portage Rotary Hockey Classic at Wings Event Center, giving them the canoe trophy for only the third time in 14 tries. It is the first Husky win in the canoe series since 2013, giving the seven Portage Northern seniors their first canoe in their final try.

Despite the three-goal final difference, the Huskies didn’t hold the lead until a Will Todd snipe put them ahead 2-1 with 2:11 remaining. Listen to the goal below:

Portage Northern had 15 shots to Portage Central’s eight in the first period, but the Mustangs entered the first intermission ahead 1-0 on a goal by Erek Decker with 56 seconds left. The Huskies evened the game with 3:17 remaining in the second period with a Koty Meadmore goal.

The game stayed at 1-1 until Todd’s goal with 2:11 to go in the third period. Right off the next face off, the Mustangs committed a holding penalty, severely hampering any hope at a response. With 55 seconds left, Quentin Roseboom delivered the rare empty net powerplay goal for a 3-1 lead. To leave no doubt, the Huskies added one more 23 seconds later, courtesy of Connor Sorge.

Sophomore goalie Peter Todd had 23 saves for Portage Northern with his sophomore counterpart Bryan Gracey turning away 34 shots for the Mustangs. The Huskies improve to 3-6-0 overall and 2-1-0 in SWMHSHL play. They return to action at the Jenison Invite over the weekend, their first game is Friday at 6:30 p.m. against Bryon Center. Portage Central falls to 1-4-0 overall and 0-2-0 in league play. They meet the Kalamazoo Eagles at Wings West Wednesday at 7:45 p.m. in a game that can be heard on the Slocum Sports Network.

So far this season, Portage Northern is 2-6-0 overall and Portage Central is 1-3-0. The Huskies are 1-1-0 in SWMHSHL play, getting their first league win Wednesday 7-5 over the Kalamazoo Eagles. The Mustangs fell in their lone league meeting to date, a 3-1 loss to the Blades of Southwest Michigan on November 22.

Saturday afternoon had teams from the SWMHSHL facing the OK Conference at Wings West, with both leagues getting a win. Portage Central defeated Kenowa Hills 6-2 for their first win of the season. Grand Haven bested Kalamazoo United 4-1 to get above the .500 mark.

Portage Central scored the first two goals of their game midway through the first period, first from Jaden Sorenson, then shorthanded by Skyler Sorenson. Michal Boor put the Knights on the board before the end of the first. PC then won the second period 3-0 off goals by Skyler Sorenson (powerplay), Konnor McLeod (shorthanded), and Canyon Morse.

The Mustangs added one more from McLeod on a powerplay in the third with Kenowa Hills getting their second score from Brendan Deneen. Things got heated in the final two minutes with fighting breaking out, leading to three ejected players for both teams. Unofficially, Portage Central goalie Gannon Miller made 23 saves. Kenowa Hills’ Derek Smith had 29. The Mustangs improve to 1-2-0 and Kenowa Hills drops to 0-5-0.

The other game was scoreless after the first period, despite Grand Haven winning the shots on goal battle 16-4. Kalamazoo United drew multiple penalties in the second period and the Buccaneers made them pay, getting two powerplay goals by Branden Beeler and one from Jake Johnson. Beeler added an even-strength goal late in the second to put Grand Haven up 4-0. United’s Matthew Romano got his team’s lone goal in the third.

Unofficially, United goalkeeper Jake Gerhard had 46 saves in the loss. Grand Haven’s Finn Bylsma had 17. The Buccaneers improve to 3-2-1 overall and Kalamazoo United falls to 1-2-0.

United’s next game is Saturday at Northview. Grand Haven neets Hudsonville at home on Friday, December 15. Kenowa Hills hosts Jenison Wednesday. Portage Central battles Detroit Country Day Saturday at Lawson Arena.

Mattawan prepares to hit the ice. Brad Kolinski (#8) and Niko Stamas (#9) both had goals Wednesday. Shaffer Moore (#1) had a shutout in net.

The Mattawan Wildcats and Blades of Southwest Michigan saw victories on Thanksgiving Eve, as Mattawan shutout the Kalamazoo Eagles 4-0 and the Blades downed Portage Central 3-1. For all four teams, it was the first action of the season within the Southwest Michigan High School Hockey League (SWMHSHL).

In game one, Mattawan controlled the possession and tempo throughout the entire contest, finishing with 42 shots on goal and allowing only 15. The first three goals came within the first six minutes of action, scored by Zach Swintz, Niko Stamas, and Brad Kolinski. The score held at 3-0 until Zach Wiggins’ goal midway through the third period.

Shaffer Moore earned his first shutout of the season for the Wildcats, giving them their first overall win of the campaign with a 1-1-1 record. The Eagles fall to 1-2-0 on the loss.

In the second game, the Blades scored on a blue-line slap shot from Vicksburg sophomore Austin Zeigler 90 seconds into the match. The game remained 1-0 until Cole Shafer’s Blade goal with 8:15 remaining in the third. Portage Central finally got by Blade goalie Zac Hattan with 4:05 to go on a Mitchell Ely goal, but a Zac Gothard empty netter in the final minute secured the Blade victory.

Hattan made 22 saves, PC’s Bryan Gracey stopped 33 shots. Jaxon Dobrolowski had assists on the first two Blade goals, helping get them to 3-0-0 overall thus far. The Mustangs sit at 0-2-0.

Portage Central is off until Saturday, December 2 at home against Kenowa Hills. The Blades return to action this Saturday at home versus Royal Oak. Mattawan’s next contest is next Wednesday against league foe Portage Northern. The Eagles join Mattawan in the doubleheader Wednesday as they face Kalamazoo United.

All four teams opened their regular season last week against non-league opponents. Mattawan sits at 0-1-1 with a 2-1 loss Friday at Grand Rapids West Catholic and a 2-2 draw Saturday against Grand Haven. The Eagles are 1-1-0 with a 8-6 Wednesday win over Kenowa Hills and a 8-3 loss Saturday to Jenison. Last November, Mattawan beat the Eagles 6-1. Their January rematch was a 7-7 draw. The last Eagle win over the Wildcats was December 10, 2014.

Both Portage Central and the Blades faced Notre Dame Prep over the weekend. The Mustangs fell 5-3 Saturday, whereas the Blades had a dominant 8-0 win Friday. The Blades also grabbed a 8-2 win over West Catholic Saturday. The Blades won both meetings with Portage Central last season, 5-3 and 2-1. The Mustangs claimed both matchups over the Blades two seasons ago.